Golf grip system

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a golf glove and club grip system having a marking or markings on the glove, the club grip or both for registration with the thumb pad of a golfer. Registration of a golfer&#39;s thumb pad with the marking(s) assists correct hand positioning on the club grip. Additionally the markings may indicate a particular club grip size or glove size that matches a complimentary glove or club grip size determined by the size of a golfer&#39;s hand.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to systems for obtaining a correct hand positionabout a golf club grip.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Fundamental to the game of golf is obtaining a correct hand position onthe golf club grip. Professional golfing tutors provide lessons teachingcorrect hand positioning. However, when the tutors are not available,for example during normal play, the hand positioning will oftendeteriorate. To address this problem, golf gloves with markings toassist correct hand positioning have been proposed. For example USPatents U.S. Pat. No. 6,272,686, U.S. Pat. No. 3,848,874 and U.S. Pat.No. 5,704,065 disclose golf gloves having markings that are said toassist players to reliably produce effective grip of the club. To theinventors' knowledge these gloves are not commercially available and arenot part of the common general knowledge.

Further, poor hand positioning is also caused by golf club grip sizesnot being matched to the golfer's hand size. This adversely affectscontrol of the golf club.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the invention to provide a golf glove and gripsystem, a golf glove, a golf grip, a range of club grips, a method toassist a golfer or a method of fitting a golfer with golf clubs toassist the correct gripping of a golf club or to address theabove-mentioned difficulties or which will at least provide the publicwith a useful choice.

In a first aspect the present invention provides a method to assist agolfer to correctly position their hands on a golf club grip comprisingor including the steps of:

-   -   wearing on the intended top hand a glove having a first marking        on the thumb portion;    -   selecting a golf club having a grip with a first indicium        adapted for alignment with the first marking of the glove;    -   aligning the first marking with the first indicium and closing        the hand to thereby grip the club.

Preferably in use the first marking is contacted with the firstindicium.

In second aspect the present invention provides a golf club and gripsystem to assist correct hand positioning comprising or including:

-   -   a golf grip having a first indicium thereon;    -   a golf glove having a first marking on the thumb portion of the        glove;    -   wherein in use the first indicium and the first marking are        aligned with each other to indicate a correct top hand thumb        position on the golf club grip.

In a third aspect the present invention provides a golf club gripcomprising or including a first indicium that in use is aligned with thethumb pad of a golfer's hand.

In a fourth aspect the present invention provides a golf glove, for usewith a golf grip having a first indicium thereon, to assist correct handpositioning on a golf club, said golf glove comprising or including:

-   -   a first marking on the thumb of the glove, wherein in use the        first indicium and the first marking are aligned with each other        to indicate a correct top hand thumb position on the golf club        grip.

In a further aspect the present invention provides a golf grip for usewith a golf glove having a marking on the thumb of the glove, said griphaving a complimentary indicium to the marking on the glove,

wherein in use the glove and grip together assist the user's placementand alignment of their top hand thumb on the grip.

Desirably the markings and indicia are contact markings and indicia,such that in use when the user correctly grips the golf club, themarking on the glove substantially contacts the complimentary indiciumon the grip.

Desirably a second indicium is a line provided on the grip that in useis aligned with the base of the fingers of the user.

Desirably a third indicium is provided on the grip. The third indiciumis shaped for alignment with the crook formed between the thumb andforefinger of the lower hand of a golfer.

Desirably the size of the grip is matched to the size of the golfer'shand(s). The size of the grip is matched to the golfer's hand size bychanging the diameter of the grip.

Desirably the first marking on the glove thumb overlies a wearer's thumbpad located on the distal phalanx of the thumb. The first markingprovides a reference for alignment with the first indicium on the grip.

Preferably the marking on the thumb of the glove substantially coversthe thumb pad of the glove, and the indicia on the grip has a matchingoutline to the thumb pad of the glove.

Optionally a second marking is provided on the glove and a secondindicium is provided on the golf grip. The second marking provides areference point for alignment with the second indicium on the grip.

Desirably the second marking on the glove comprises a narrow line or abroad corridor or both extending across the base of the fingers on thepalm side of the glove. The narrow line is positioned to match againstthe second indicium of the grip when a user holds the club with acorrect grip. The broad corridor provides a reference guide for the pathof the club grip across the palm that can be checked withoutsubstantially releasing the glove from the club.

Desirably the second marking includes both a narrow line and a broadcorridor, and the narrow line is off centre with respect to thecorridor.

Desirably the narrow line and/or corridor are angled at between about20° to about 40° from a horizontal line across the golf glove, moredesirably between about 25° and about 35°, most desirably 32°.

Typically for a right handed golfer the golf glove will be adapted forthe left hand of the golfer and for a left handed golfer the golf glovewill be adapted for the right hand of the golfer. Both a left and righthand glove being may be provided for the golfer.

For a right handed golfer the markings of the glove and grip areconfigured to position the hand(s) to the right of the centre of thegolf club grip. For a left handed golfer the markings of the glove andgrip are configured to position the hand(s) to the left of the centre ofthe golf club grip. Preferably the markings are configured to assist auser to maintain any one of the following grips: Overlap or Vardon grip;Interlocking grip; or Baseball or Ten Finger grip.

Desirably the markings will be on the palm side of the glove, so that inuse they form a contact alignment with the indicia on the club grip.Alternatively the markings could be on the non-palm side of the glove,so that in use they form a visual alignment with the complimentaryindicia on the club grip.

Desirably the size and shape of the markings and indicia are matched tothe size of the golfer's hands.

In another aspect the present invention provides a range of club gripswith different external diameters comprising or including indicia on theclub grips, and a complimentary range of sized golf gloves provided withmarkings that match with indicia on a suitably sized grip, wherein inuse the indicia assist a golfer to select a club grip matched to theirhand size.

In a further aspect the present invention provides a glove comprising amarking representing the size of the glove, wherein in use gripping aclub the marking is aligned with an indicium on a club grip, saidindicium also representing the diameter of the grip.

In yet a further aspect the present invention provides a method offitting a golfer with golf clubs comprising the steps of:

-   -   fitting a golfer with a glove or gloves from a range of gloves        having different markings depending on the size of the glove;        and    -   selecting grips or clubs with grips from a range of grips or        clubs with grips having different indicia depending on the        external diameter of the grip, wherein said selected grips or        clubs with grips have indicia matched to the markings on the        fitted glove or gloves.

Other aspects of the invention may become apparent from the followingdescription which is given by way of example only and with reference tothe accompanying drawings.

As used herein the term “and/or” means “and” or “or”, or both.

As used herein “(s)” following a noun means the plural and/or singularforms of the noun.

The term “comprising” as used in this specification and claims means“consisting at least in part of”. When interpreting statements in thisspecification and claims which include that term, the features, prefacedby that term in each statement, all need to be present but otherfeatures can also be present. Related terms such as “comprise” and“comprised” are to be interpreted in the same manner.

It is intended that reference to a range of numbers disclosed herein(for example, 1 to 10) also incorporates reference to all rationalnumbers within that range (for example, 1, 1.1, 2, 3, 3.9, 4, 5, 6, 6.5,7, 8, 9 and 10) and also any range of rational numbers within that range(for example, 2 to 8, 1.5 to 5.5 and 3.1 to 4.7).

In this specification where reference has been made to patentspecifications, other external documents, or other sources ofinformation, this is generally for the purpose of providing a contextfor discussing the features of the invention. Unless specifically statedotherwise, reference to such external documents is not to be construedas an admission that such documents, or such sources of information, inany jurisdiction, are prior art, or form part of the common generalknowledge in the art.

To those skilled in the art to which the invention relates, many changesin construction and widely differing embodiments and applications of theinvention will suggest themselves without departing from the scope ofthe invention as defined in the appended claims. The disclosures and thedescriptions herein are purely illustrative and are not intended to bein any sense limiting.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The invention is further described with reference to the accompanyingfigures.

FIG. 1 a is a top view of a grip of the present invention.

FIG. 1 b is an end view of a grip of the present invention.

FIG. 1 c is a view of the first indicium on a grip of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 a is a diagram of a men's glove of the present invention.

FIG. 2 b is a view of a ladies' glove of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a view of several glove palms of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view of several club grips of the present invention.

FIGS. 5 a to 5 g show the use of the glove and grip of the presentinvention are used to assist a golfer obtaining correct handpositioning.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Both the singular and plural terms ‘indicium’ and ‘marking’ as used inthis specification refer to visual references provided on the grip andglove respectively and may be formed using varying colours, textures,shapes and materials to identify a particular line, point or area.

The figures and following description refer to gloves for a right handedgolf player. The scope of the invention also includes club grips andgloves adapted for use by left handed players.

FIG. 1 a is a top view of a grip of the present invention. A firstindicium 116 provides a thumb reference. The thumb reference is intendedto be contacted by the thumb of a golfer. Preferably the thumb referenceis shaped to match against the thumb print of the user and willtypically have an oval shape. The thumb reference is desirably offsetfrom the centreline of the club by a distance 121 of about 0.13 inches.

FIG. 1 c shows a thumb reference in more detail. Typically the thumbreference has a length of about 1.12 inches and a width of about 0.75inches.

A second indicium 114 is a line reference that is intended to matchagainst a line on the palm of the preferred complementary glove.Preferably the line reference is offset by an angle 129 between about40° to about 70° from the centreline of the club 112. More preferablyfor a men's grip the line reference is about 50° offset from to thecentreline of the club and for a ladies grip the line reference isoffset by about 40° offset from to the centreline of the club.

The third indicium 118 is shaped to in use align with the crook formedbetween the forefinger and the thumb on the lower hand of the golferwhen the club is gripped. While the shape of the third indicium 118 isillustrated as a ‘V’ in FIG. 1 a, it will be appreciated that othershapes such as a single line or a dot or a coloured area may also beused. Preferably angle 123 is about 60° and angle 125 is about 50°.

The length 126 of third indicium 118, the distance 128 between the firstand third indicia, and the length 120 of the second indicium 114 allvary according to the size of the golfer's hand. The length of the gripmay also vary according to the club type, among other things.

FIG. 1 b is an end view of a club grip of the present invention. Anangle of between about 40° to about 70°, preferably about 50° for amen's grip and about 40° for a women's gripis provided between thecentreline of the club grip 112 and the second indicium 114. The corediameter 110 of the grip is varied according to the size of the golfer'shand.

An additional marking (not shown) is provided on the grip to assist thecorrect fitting of the grip to the club using known in the arttechniques. The grip must be accurately aligned to ensure the correctpositioning of the indicia 114, 116 and 118 relative to the club shaftand club head.

FIGS. 2 a and 2 b are illustrations of a men's and women's golf glove208 and 209 of the present invention. The following description relatesto the men's golf glove as illustrated in FIG. 2 a. A first marking 210is provided on the thumb of the glove. The marking 210 will align withthe first indicium 116 on the club grip. The marking is preferably apatch that is oval in shape and corresponds to the thumb print of theuser. Preferably the marking is on the palm side of the glove.

A second marking 212 is provided across the base of the fingers and maycomprise a corridor 212 b and/or a line 212 a. In FIG. 2 both a corridor212 b and a line 212 a are provided. Preferably the second marking 212is provided at an angle 218 of 32° from a horizontal line extendingacross the palm of the glove.

In use the corridor 212 b will align with a golf grip to confirm acorrect hand position. The width 214 of the corridor 212 b willtypically be commensurate with the width 110 of the grip. Both the widthof the corridor 212 b and the grip will vary according to the user'shand size.

In use the line 212 a will align with a corresponding reference line 114on a grip to confirm a correct hand position. Typically when both thecorridor 212 b and line 212 a are present the line will be within thecorridor. Preferably the line will be off-center within the corridor.Typically the line will be spaced a distance 216 of about 0.157 inches(4 mm) from the lower edge of the corridor FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate arange of colour coded gloves and grips of the present invention.

Each glove and grip size has a unique colour to assist a golfer toselect a glove and grip matched to the golfer's hand size. Table 1 belowsets out the reference numerals applied to the glove and grip sizesillustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4.

TABLE 1 Ladies S Ladies M Ladies L Mens S Mens M Mens ML Mens L Mens XLGlove Ref. 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 Grip Ref. 411 412 413 414 415416 417 418 Colour Pink Light Gold Light Orange Red Green Dark BlueYellow Blue Key: S Small M Medium ML Medium Large L Large XL Extra Large

Table 2 below contains data showing how the indicia and markings on thepreferred golf grip and glove vary according to the user's hand size.The data provided refers to the dimensions set out in FIGS. 1 b, 2 a and2 b and explained above.

TABLE 2 Grip Glove 120 128 126 110 214 216 218 Size Colour (inches)(inches) (inches) (inches) (inches) (inches) (degrees) Mens S Light5.545 1.515 1.0 0.935 1.187 0.157 32 Yellow Mens M Orange 5.625 1.6751.0 0.950 1.187 0.157 32 Mens Red 5.705 1.835 1.0 0.965 1.187 0.157 32ML Mens L Green 5.785 1.995 1.0 0.980 1.187 0.157 32 Mens Dark Blue5.865 2.155 1.0 0.995 1.187 0.157 32 XL Grip Glove 120 128 126 110 224226 228 Size Colour (inches) (inches) (inches) (inches) (inches)(inches) (degrees) Ladies S Pink 5.545 1.035 1.0 0.900 1.0 0.157 32Ladies M Light Blue 5.625 1.195 1.0 0.915 1.0 0.157 32 Ladies L Gold5.705 1.355 1.0 0.930 1.0 0.157 32 Key: S Small M Medium ML Medium LargeL Large XL Extra Large

FIGS. 5 a to 5 g show how the golf glove and grip of the presentinvention are used to assist a right handed golfer obtain a correct handposition. A left handed golfer follows the same steps with the left andright hand instructions reversed.

In FIG. 5 a the golfer places the head of a golf club having the grip ofthe present invention on the ground. The face of the club is aimedtowards the target area for a golf ball. In this orientation the indiciaon the grip will be facing upward and away from the golfer.

In FIG. 5 b the golfer places the first marking of the glove (the ‘thumbpad’) onto the first indicia of the grip (the ‘thumb pad reference’).

Then, as illustrated in FIG. 5 c, the golfer closes his/her fingersabout the grip. FIG. 5 d shows that the left hand of the golfer is nowcorrectly position on the golf club. The line formed between the thumband the forefinger on the left hand points towards the right shoulder.

FIG. 5 e illustrates how a second mark on the glove (the ‘palm line’)and second indicium on the grip (the ‘line reference’) can be used tocheck if hand positioning is correct. The golfer opens their left handto check if the palm line and line reference are aligned. The palm linemay include a broad corridor and a narrow line. The broad corridorshould align with the width of the grip and assists checking alignmentwhile minimizing the extent to which the golfer must open their lefthand. This reduces the risk of the club grip moving relative to theglove and spoiling alignment. The narrow line indicates precisealignment of the glove and grip, but requires the user to roll theirhand open to check correct contact alignment.

In FIG. 5 f the right hand is placed on the grip so the grip runs acrossthe base of the fingers with a small gap to the forefinger.

The golfer then wraps their right hand on top of their left hand andaligns their right forefinger and right thumb with a third indicium onthe grip as illustrated by FIG. 5 g.

The golfer's right thumb pad sits atop the left thumb and the lineformed between the right forefinger and right thumb is parallel to theline formed between the left thumb and left forefinger.

The golf club grips can have a range of different external diameters andcan include indicia of varying geometry and size matched to the handsize of a golfer. A complimentary range of sized golf gloves withmarkings of varying geometry and size matched to a suitable grip mayalso be provided.

In use a golfer will select a suitable glove(s) matched to their handsize from the range of gloves. A grip or a club with a grip is selectedthat matches the glove and the hand size of the golfer such that in usethe markings on the glove and grip will align when the golfer's hand(s)are correctly positioned about the grip.

The golf glove may be made from leather, knotted acrylic material,cotton, wool, transversely isotropic material or any other suitablematerial. The glove markings may be printed on the glove, or stained orotherwise made noticeable on the background glove material.

Where in the foregoing description reference has been made to elementsor integers having known equivalents, then such equivalents are includedas if they were individually set forth.

The foregoing describes the invention and a preferred form(s) thereof.Alterations and modifications as will be obvious to those skilled in theart are intended to be incorporated within the scope hereof. Forexample: the golf club grip can be configured for direct registrationwith the thumb pad of the golfer without a glove.

1. A golf glove and grip system to assist correct hand positioningcomprising or including: a golf grip having a first indicium thereon;and a golf glove having a first marking on the thumb portion of theglove; wherein in use the first indicium and the first marking arealigned with each other to indicate a correct top hand thumb position onthe golf club grip.
 2. A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein thediameter of the golf grip is matched to the size of a golfer's hands. 3.A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein a second marking is provided onthe glove and a second indicium is provided on the golf grip, saidsecond marking and said second indicium configured such that in use thesecond marking provides a reference point for alignment with the secondindicium on the grip.
 4. A system as claimed in claim 3 wherein thesecond marking on the glove comprises at least one of a narrow line anda broad corridor extending across the base of the fingers on the palmside of the glove.
 5. A system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the secondmarking on the glove comprises at least one of: a narrow line positionedto in use match against the second indicium of the grip when a userholds the club with a correct grip; and a broad corridor configured toin use provide a reference guide for the path of the club grip acrossthe palm that can be checked without substantially releasing the glovefrom the club.
 6. A system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the secondmarking includes both a narrow line and a broad corridor, and the narrowline is off centre with respect to the corridor.
 7. A system as claimedin claim 4, wherein the narrow line and/or corridor are angled atbetween about 20° to about 40° from a horizontal line across the golfglove.
 8. A system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the narrow line and/orcorridor are angled at about 32° from a horizontal line across the golfglove.
 9. A system as claimed in claim 1, said system configured for aright handed golfer, wherein the markings of the glove and the indiciaof the grip are configured to position the hand(s) of the golfer to theright of the centre of the golf club grip.
 10. A system as claimed inclaim 9, wherein the glove is adapted for the left hand of the golfer.11. A system as claimed in claim 1, said system configured for a lefthanded golfer, wherein the markings of the glove and the indicia of thegrip are configured to position the hand(s) of the golfer to the left ofthe centre of the golf club grip.
 12. A system as claimed in claim 11,wherein the glove is adapted for the right hand of the golfer.
 13. Asystem as claimed in claim 1, wherein the markings are on the palm sideof the glove, so that in use they form a contact alignment with theindicia on the club grip.
 14. A system as claimed in claim 1, whereinthe markings are on the non-palm side of the glove, so that in use theyform a visual alignment with the complimentary indicia on the club grip.15. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least one of the size,shape, and position of the markings and indicia are matched to the sizeof a golfer's hands.
 16. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein thefirst indicium is a thumb dot on the grip.
 17. A system as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the first marking is a thumb dot on the thumb pad ofthe glove.
 18. A system as claimed in claim 16 wherein the thumb dot isovally shaped have a length of between about 20 mm to about 50 mm and awidth of between about 10 mm to about 40 mm.
 19. A golf glove, for usewith a golf grip having a first indicium thereon, to assist correct handpositioning on a golf club, said golf glove comprising or including: afirst marking on the thumb of the glove, wherein in use the firstindicium and the first marking are aligned with each other to indicate acorrect top hand thumb position on the golf club grip.
 20. A golf gloveas claimed in claim 19, wherein the first marking on the glove thumboverlies a wearer's thumb pad located on the distal phalanx of thethumb.
 21. A golf glove as claimed in claim 19, wherein the marking onthe thumb of the glove substantially covers the thumb pad of the glove,and the indicia on the grip has a matching outline to the thumb pad ofthe glove.
 22. A golf glove as claimed in claim 19, wherein at least oneof the markings and indicia are contact markings or indicia, such thatin use when the user correctly grips the golf club, a marking on theglove substantially contacts the complimentary indicium on the grip. 23.A golf club grip including a first indicium on the golf club grip thatin use is aligned with the thumb pad of a golfer's hand.
 24. A golf clubgrip as claimed in claim 23 wherein said indicium comprises a thumb dotthat in use is aligned with the distal phalanx pad of a golfer's thumb.25. A golf club grip as claimed in claim 23 wherein said indiciumsubstantially overlies the centreline of the grip.
 26. A golf club gripas claimed in claim 23, wherein the thumb dot is ovally shaped have alength of between about 20 mm to about 50 mm and a width of betweenabout 10 mm to about 40 mm.
 27. A golf club grip as claimed in claim 23for use with a golf glove having a marking on the thumb of the glove,said grip having a complimentary indicium to the marking on the glove,wherein in use the glove and grip together assist the user's placementand alignment of their top hand thumb on the grip.
 28. A golf grip asclaimed in claim 27, wherein a second indicium is provided on the grip,said second indicium comprising a line that in use is aligned with thebase of the fingers of the user.
 29. A golf grip as claimed in claim 27,wherein a third indicium is provided on the grip, said third indiciumbeing shaped for, in use, alignment with the crook formed between thethumb and forefinger of the lower hand of a golfer.
 30. A golf grip asclaimed in claim 27, wherein at least one of the markings and indiciaare contact markings or indicia, such that in use when the usercorrectly grips the golf club, a marking on the glove substantiallycontacts the complimentary indicium on the grip.
 31. A golf grip asclaimed in claim 27, wherein at least one of the diameter of the gripand the length of the grip is matched to the size of the golfer'shand(s).
 32. A method to assist a golfer to correctly position theirhands on a golf club grip comprising or including the steps of: wearingon the intended top hand a glove having a first marking on the thumbportion; selecting a golf club having a grip with a first indiciumadapted for alignment with the first marking of the glove; and aligningthe first marking with the first indicium and closing the hand tothereby grip the club.
 33. A method as claimed in claim 32 wherein inuse the first marking is contacted with the first indicium.
 34. A rangeof club grips with different external diameters comprising or includingindicia on the club grips, and a complimentary range of sized golfgloves provided with markings that match with indicia on a suitablysized grip, wherein in use the indicia assist a golfer to select a clubgrip matched to their hand size.
 35. A range of club grips as claimed inclaim 34, wherein the diameter of the grip is matched to the size of agolfer's hands.
 36. A range of club grips as claimed in claim 34,wherein the size, position or both of the indicia is matched to the sizeof a golfer's hands.
 37. A glove comprising a marking representing thesize of the glove, wherein in use gripping a club the marking is alignedwith an indicium on a club grip, said indicium also representing thediameter of the grip.
 38. A glove according to claim 37 wherein theglove has a predetermined size and the marking comprises at least one ofa shape, colour and pattern that matches at least one of a shape, colourand pattern on a grip having the same predetermined size.
 39. A methodof fitting a golfer with golf clubs comprising the steps of: fitting agolfer with a glove or gloves from a range of gloves having differentmarkings depending on the size of the glove; and selecting grips orclubs with grips from a range of grips or clubs with grips havingdifferent indicia depending on the external diameter of the grip,wherein said selected grips or clubs with grips have indicia matched tothe markings on the fitted glove or gloves.
 40. A method according toclaim 38 wherein the markings on the glove or gloves comprises at leastone of a shape, colour and pattern that matches at least one of a shape,colour and pattern on the selected grip.